Monday, February 10, 2014

Ten-year-old Elvis Jones is tired of being picked on, taunted, and
teased by the bullies at his elementary school, so he does what any
smart, technologically brilliant kid his age would do: he creates EKHO,
the Evil Kid Hunting Organization, a sophisticated network of kid spies
and secret agents that utilize a variety of cool gadgets to stay one
step ahead of the enemy – the bullies. They hire kids, make them swear
allegiance to the organization, and train them as Commandos, Privates,
and Elite Spies. As kids rise through the ranks, the missions, posted on
an encrypted EKHO website, require more smarts and skill, especially
when the bullies form their own counterspy group called DEKE (Destroy
EKHO Kids Everywhere).

It’s all in good fun, until the kids of EKHO must put their pretend
skills to use for far more serious, and dangerous, missions. As field
agents come across evidence of more sinister forces, they now have to
deal with the strange, weird, and the unknown as they look for the truth
about the bizarre and creepy threats to their school, their families,
and their own lives. They experience betrayal, intrigue, infiltration
and counter-espionage as well as teachers and adults who act more
mysterious with each passing day, which leaves Elvis and his EKHO team
wondering: who can you trust when the person standing next to you might
not be entirely human?

The kids that generally get bullied at Royal Elementary are tired of it so they decide to fight back by forming EKHO, Evil Kid Hunting Organization. They put up a website, buy cool gadgets and taste success! Elvis is the leader of this group and the other elites are Levi, Jackson and Jordy. Then Elvis allows his crush, Kayley, to become an elite but there is soon trouble. The bullies decide to fight back with DEKE, Destroy EKHO Kids Everywhere. They hack into EKHO's website and create havoc. Elvis knows someone from the inside had to give them info and Kayley appears to be the leak. Would she really betray them or is she trustworthy after all?

I like that the little guys were willing to stand against the bullies and thought their approach was quite creative. I like Elvis. He was born with a condition similar to cerebral palsy and has had a
lot of surgeries and therapies through the years and walks with a limp,
which makes him a prime target to be bullied. He has a lot stacked against him but does the best he can and wants all the kids to feel safe in school. He is smart and flexible and willing to deal with harsh realities. He has a good relationship with his mother.

I also like his mother, Daphne. His parents are divorced but they have a good relationship and are able to be civil to each other. Daphne sticks up for Elvis but also teaches him the importance of respecting those in authority. She's a hard worker and, even though she doesn't make much money, they have everything they need and are happy with it.

What I don't like about this book is the swearing. I don't usually give a content warning on middle-grade reads. She doesn't technically use the "f" word, but does use dashes once. Other swear words are used and some of the boys' language was rough. I thought they used the word "pedo" way too often.

There is a cliffhanger at the end but overall the book didn't draw me in enough to make me want to continue reading the series.

My Rating=3 Stars

Author Marie D. Jones

Marie D. Jones is a best-selling author with an extensive background
in unknown mysteries, metaphysics, science, and the paranormal. She has
been featured multiple times on the History Channel in Ancient Aliens
and Nostradamus Effect. Marie also served as a special UFO/abduction
consultant for the 2009 Universal Pictures movie, The Fourth Kind. She
is a staff writer for FATE Magazine and Intrepid Magazine and a regular
contributor to Paranoia Magazine and New Dawn Magazine. Marie has been
interviewed on hundreds of radio talk shows all over the world,
including Coast to Coast AM, and has been featured in dozens of
newspapers, magazines, and online publications, internationally. She has
lectured widely at major paranormal, new science, and self-empowerment
events, and is the screenwriter and co-producer of 19 Hz, a paranormal
thriller in development with Bruce Lucas Films.

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